Former Minister of Sports, Solomon Dalung, has appealed to the Federal Government to grant a presidential pardon to the suspended Deputy Commissioner of Police, Abba Kyari.
He described Kyari’s continued detention and trial as “a travesty of justice.”
In a statement, Dalung, who also leads the Movement for the Emancipation of Nigeria, said it was worrisome that Kyari remains in custody despite recent presidential pardons granted to convicted drug traffickers, fraudsters, kidnappers, and bandits.
He said the development reflects “a grave injustice and ridicule of the principle of fairness,” insisting that it is “morally indefensible to continue the persecution of an officer whose only crime was his patriotic zeal to combat the same menace now being rewarded by the state.”
Dalung argued that the wave of clemency extended to notorious criminals has “emptied the moral and legal basis” for Kyari’s continued detention.
He added that the ongoing prosecution represents “a double standard that undermines the integrity of Nigeria’s justice system.”
“Justice demands consistency, and equity demands that mercy must not be reserved for the guilty while punishment is sustained against the righteous,” Dalung said.
He urged President Bola Tinubu and the Attorney-General of the Federation to discontinue all charges against Kyari and ensure his immediate release in the interest of fairness, national healing, and reconciliation.
“Anything short of this will amount to a travesty of justice and a dangerous precedent that discourages public officers from dedicating themselves to the fight against crime,” the statement added.